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Where are Kevin and Ruth right now? Calderitas (Chetumal), Quintana Roo, Mexico.

Where are they going next? Xpujl, Campeche, Mexico. Arriving February 20th.

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Back in Canada!

Happy to be back in Canada? Not really.

Excited about the next five months? You bet!!

We drove 224 miles (360 kms) yesterday and hardly saw another car. What a desolate area!

Circle, Montana to Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan!

Not much to see up there.

A few abandoned homesteads along the way. I guess the people who lived here finally said "what the heck am I doing here??"

14 miles to the border!

Ruth didn't get a photo of the fancy new border station on the American side. Apparently they spent $12M on the new building in 2012. Quite a contrast to the one on the Canadian side!

This border station processes an average of 22 cars per day during the busy summer season!

No problem crossing the border. The guard asked why we were going into Saskatchewan when our car has Ontario plates, how many dollars worth of goods we were bringing into Canada, and whether we spent any money on car repairs or improvements. First time we've ever been asked that last question. Then he took our passports and said he had "to do an ID check". Okay, whatever. He was gone five minutes or so, and came back and sent us on our way.

Hmm. Is there more snow on the Canadian side of the border??!!

Still some of the old style grain elevators in Saskatchewan.

Did they have a sale on orange paint?

Pretty sure that's what Sturgeon Lake is going to look like when we get up there on Wednesday!

Came to an intersection close to Moose Jaw and saw this stinky fellow near the side of the road!

We arrived in Moose Jaw around 2:00pm and had no problem finding Wendy and Phil's house. Wendy has been reading our blog for a couple of years now, and we've finally been able to meet up. She's an RV'er who spends most of her winters in the Rockport, Texas area. She saw we were coming up through this area and invited us to spend the night!

We talked for a couple of hours and then they took us for a driving tour around Moose Jaw (pop 35,000). We had been in Moose Jaw at the end of October 2007 on our very first excursion west with Sherman the motorhome. And coincidentally, my father was born here in Moose Jaw!

There is an Al Capone connection to the city of Moose Jaw. During the prohibition era, the story goes that Al Capone worked out of Moose Jaw!

There are a lot of interesting murals on the buildings in Moose Jaw.

And another.

The old train station is now a liquor store!

Thanks for the tour, Wendy and Phil!

Only a short stay though. Still more driving to do! Today, we're headed further north...to the city of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. We've never been there before!

My sister lived in Moose Jaw for a time. Her then hubby was in the Air Force. If my nephew was more than a couple minutes late coming home from school, she'd be out to fetch him. Frost bite would happen pretty quick.

Interesting name - Moose Jaw! Enjoyed all the pics of the area - especially the grain elevators since we live at an old feed mill. That is one beautiful liquor store building - love the lights!Connie in PA

Yes, that's the point. With Canada's goods and services tax, they don't want to miss out on any possible tax revenue. So, any car repairs done in the U.S. are declarable items. Having said that, they also have the discretion to decide if that item was an "emergency" repair or not. If they decide it was an emergency repair, then you won't pay duty on it. Otherwise, such as body and paint repairs done in Mexico, it is technically a declarable purchase.

Wow $12M on a building to process 22 a day during the HIGH season? And we wonder why we have a big national debt. Glad you made it safely to Moose Jaw. I just lOVE the name. What fun to write that as your address.

Yes, Toronto has a ton of things to do and places to eat but once you get off the Trans Canada Highway in Saskatchewan the province will surprise you. If you love the outdoors, it is a great place to visit and the sky here is absolutely amazing!

Everybody was ready to go right on time again. We pulled out just before 9:00am onto the busy pot-holed road towards Veracruz. It's amaz...

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